Workers Spending More Time On The Net At Work

November 14, 2002 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Casual
internet use at work may be costing American corporations $85
billion annually in lost productivity, according to internet
management software company Websense, Inc.

Seventy million American workers now have access to the
Internet at work, and workers admit spending 1.5 hours a
week visiting non-work related Web sites while in the
office.
Taking this figure and multiplying it by the average US
salary as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
Websense says that “cyberslacking” may be costing American
business $85 billion annually.

HR managers say this number is much higher, as workers
may spend up to 8.3 hours per week visiting non-work
related Web sites.

The US Department of Labor recently announced the
number of hours workers spent at work during the second
quarter fell at an annual rate of 2.5%.
Combined with increasing personal internet use,
Websense says employers may have to come up with new
methods to control worker productivity such as Internet
controlling software or eliminating Internet access
altogether.